He was a graduate of Virginia High School, the University of Minnesota, and Bethel Seminary. Gerald served as a pastor for Scandia Baptist Church in Waconia, Minn., and Kulm Baptist Church in North Dakota. He also served as chaplain at the Duluth Bethel Mission and retired from the Duluth Transit Authority. Gerald will be remembered by many as a man of God and also for his great sense of humor.

He was preceded in death by his loving wife, Jean of 57 years; father, Wayne and mother, Lyla; foster parents, Clyde and Lila Semon; sisters, Dorothy, Joyce, and Florence; and brother, Floyd.